Xena and the group of young Northern Amazons build a bonya in a camp. Later Xena and Otere relax in the steam in the bonya to purge their minds and bodies. Xena knows that they have to develop spiritual powers of their own if they want to beat Alti. Recalling one of the last times she was in a bonya, Xena remembers spying on and battling a naked Cyane, the Queen of the Northern Amazons. They take the fight outside after Cyane steals Xena's clothes. Xena, in return, takes Cyane's outfit, left in the bonya. Xena chases Cyane by leaping from tree to tree. Once the two meet up, they battle and Xena has clearly met her match. Just as Cyane is about to kill Xena, Borias arrives and convinces her to release Xena in exchange for peace. As Xena finishes her story, she tells Otere that she is going to help her mold a new life. Later that night, Xena leads the young Amazons through the dance of the spirits, which will free them from the prisons of their bodies. At the same time, Alti does her own macabre dance, which calls upon the spirits of those killed recently by Xena. Alti promises to send them to Eternity if they kill Xena and the young Amazons. Otherwise, they will be doomed to remain in the Land of the Dead. Xena and the young Amazons collapse in a trance just as the evil spirits find them.
Xena's spirit rises from her corporeal body and she begins to cajole the spirits out of the others. But the evil spirits are looming and they dive into the bodies of the Amazons. Suddenly, Otere and Yakut jump up and begin to fight Xena. Knowing that her friends are possessed, Xena defends herself, but holds back. She performs a chant and the spirits leave Otere and Yakut's bodies. Later that day, Xena realizes that Alti's stronghold is located at the Amazon Place of Rest because the evil shamaness draws her powers from the Northern Amazon dead. Xena tells her friends to set up camp for the night and to enclose it with a charm ring to protect them from Alti. Later that night while the others sleep, Xena sits wide awake, contemplating the impending battle, when a spider lands on her face. As Xena collapses into a trance, the spider morphs into Gabrielle, who then morphs into Alti and proceeds to grab Xena by the throat. After Alti shows the hallucinating Xena how she cursed her child to never know the love of his parents, she demands to know who this blonde one her rival searches for is. Xena says goodness, the one thing that can defeat her. Xena finally forces herself to come out of this trance and crushes the spider. As Alti's spirit leaves the spider, Xena falls into unconsciousness.
When she comes to, Xena, Otere, Yakut, and the other young women go to the Amazon Resting Place, where she confesses how after Cyane taught her how to harness spiritual power and defeated Alti, she betrayed Cyane by killing the Northern Amazon leader and her entire tribe to gather their blood for Alti to harness more spiritual power off of. As Xena takes full responsibility for giving Alti her powers, she rushes the young Amazons, putting the "pinch" on every one of them. Suddenly, Xena puts the "pinch" on herself. As everyone lies dying, their spirits rise up out of their bodies and combine to form one collective Xena spirit. Alti and her evil spirits immediately burst through the forest and morph into one collective Alti spirit. As Xena and Alti begin to battle skyward, the evil shamaness continues to inflict psychological terror. Instead of reliving her past, Alti forces painful scenes of the future onto Xena. Just when it appears that Xena is beaten, a future vision of Gabrielle and her tied to crosses by the Romans and about to be executed appears in Xena's mind -- Gabrielle is alive! Xena, with renewed strength, impales Alti on a sapling, releasing the curse on the Northern Amazons. Xena's spirit returns to her body and she takes the "pinch" off of the others. Leaving Otere as the new leader of the Northern Amazons, Xena starts back for Greece with the knowledge that Gabrielle is alive.
Guest Starring: Marton Csokas (Borais), Claire Stansfield (Alti), Sheeri Rappaport (Otere), Vicky Pratt (Cyane), Kate Elliot (Yakut), Jay Saussey (Young Woman), Barry Duffield (Koryak)
Starring: Lucy Lawless as Xena, Renee O'Connor as Gabrielle
Teleplay by R.J. Stewart
Story by Rob Tapert & R.J. Stewart
Directed by T.J. Scott